Nvidia surpassed Apple to become the world's most valuable company by market capitalization in June 2024.
Nvidia took the top position on June 18, 2024, after a powerful rise in its share price. The company benefited from intense demand for graphics processing units used in artificial-intelligence systems and data centers.
Nvidia began as a specialist graphics-chip designer, but its CUDA software platform and data-center products helped make it central to modern AI computing. Investors consequently reassessed the company's growth prospects and pushed its market value sharply higher.
Market-cap leadership can be temporary. Microsoft, Apple, and Nvidia exchanged the top position during 2024 as their share prices moved, so a ranking should always be tied to a date and trading session.